Tips to inspire field crew?

And before anyone says it, yes, money is inspiring. They are all make more that I did when I was (with a baby on the way no less) at their point in my career. Gosh I’m turning into an old man. I’m paid pretty well but we should all be making more. We live in a very HCOL area and and inflation is brutal.

Just my $0.02 but it sounds to me like you're in the wrong place. What solidified that thought for me was when you said "It doesn’t help that our boss is apathetic and I most likely care about the end result more than him."

You want better for these folks but you can't make them love the same things you love. You're fighting an uphill battle and you're going to lose.

Cut your losses, move on and concentrate on being the best you can be while providing for your family.

*cough cough* we're hiring 😉

Congratulations, you're one of the ones who cares! Here's your reward...

I refer to this as the "sandwich effect". Bosses/PMs/PLSs just want to get the work done and out the door, entry- and lower-level employees are disgruntled, apathetic and/or set in their ways.

Pressure from the top to get done faster, get UT up, make their numbers look good, but don't bother them with any questions or, god forbid, ask for training or mentorship.

Pressure from the bottom to resist any sort of improvement that requires more than the bare minimum of effort. Question everything they're asked to do and actively resent anything that they didn't think of themselves.

I'd be looking to jump ship.

> I’d be looking to jump ship.

Yeah, me too.

I would echo what the others have said so far. I would add that leading by example (which you are already doing) is a key example of good leadership. Good morale comes from a lot of different paths and it is acquired by everyone differently. The leadership above you is not helping the situation and good luck trying to change that. Best you can do is offer them some ideas on what you are thinking about and maybe spark their interest enough to help. Apathy is very hard to break through; especially from "below" the ranks. One small thing is ask you managers for some funds to buy the crew lunch or dinner maybe once a month after a tough day. It's small money but it does go a long way.

In my career as a surveyor I have worked in 15 different offices. I've seen a lot of management styles, some good, most various degrees of bad.

The managers who I consider good had crystal clear visions of what they wanted and how they wanted it done. They weren't always the easiest to get along with and I - in my youth - didn't always agree with their vision. But looking back those were the happiest times of my career, the times I learned the most about what works, and the times I developed the ideas about surveying that I use today.

The worst bosses were those that never could quite express what they wanted. So it always seemed very arbitrary. You felt like you were shooting at a moving target. I didn't learn a lot about surveying from these people, but I did learn some coping skills - which is also important.

Sometimes things don't meet our expectations but we are already doing the best we can. Your crew is what it is. Offer to pay me twice as much if I can climb a rope. It won't motivate me, because I have never been able to climb a rope and there is no reason to believe I will suddenly be able to.

If the bosses see no problem, then it is time for you to find an employer that actually cares about the end product.

I am dying to meet an old guy who loves surveying to show me the ropes.

Find that guy, you'll be much, much happier and he will appreciate the fire in your belly.

Like it or not, it's time to move on.

Appreciate it, all. I am at a bit of a crossroads in my career. I am studying for my PS (again zero help from my LS). I have worked my entire 7 yeah career at this firm which is a pretty successful small civil/survey firm. They took a chance on me as a green guy who didn’t even know what surveying was and had zero relevant education.

I understand that in this day and age it is foolish to have loyalty to a company but I have really established myself as a critical part of the survey office and quite frankly they would be in a tough spot without me. When I got my LSIT I negotiated a very, very large raise. So I get paid well, full medical, dental and vision and enjoy the guys I work with

I plan on becoming licensed but my boss is incapable of teaching, it’s odd. Almost a disability of sorts. He also never goes to the field which is definitely not the type of surveyor I want to be. I don’t mean to trash him he is a good guy. But of course training the new guys falls on me. Coming up with SOP falls on me. I Love going to work in the morning and enjoy the jobs we do. So all of this is hard to leave behind. Maybe I keep reading browns et al cover to cover and pass that test.

My concern is leaving to a less enjoyable work environment and potentially take a pay cut just for some supposed mentoring.

What Squirl said!

Attitudes like you describe for your LS I think have a lot to do with the lack of people moving up in the profession, if you're not getting the employees interested in progressing, why should they stick around.

In my current employ, like everywhere else it seems, we are having trouble finding people that are more than drafters and at least on their way to licensure, so it has been discussed to set aside some time, maybe once or twice a month to train up the 20 somethings in the office that are really interested in the profession and for the past few years have been pretty much draftsman and learning as they go. The owner has myself, who he knows will only be around for maybe a few more years and one other person that is studying for licensure.

Hope everything works out for the good of yourself and your family.

If you don't mind the heat of Phoenix in the Summer, we're always keeping an eye out for qualified people.

If anyone is in The north bay feel free to reach out.

I didn’t learn a lot about surveying from these people, but I did learn some coping skills – which is also important.

LOL, that is called making lemonade out of lemons.

My first boss told me: if I could take the best from every party chief I worked with, I could be be the best party chief ever!

I took it one step further and took the worst from the party chiefs I worked with and DIDN'T do that, I could be even better!

Make good choices and don't worry about what your bosses and co-workers are doing; stay in your lane and you'll go a lot further...